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pdfNational Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal
Year 2008, P.L. 110-181, Sec. 1618 to 1624
PUBLIC LAW 110–181—JAN. 28, 2008
122 STAT. 3
Public Law 110–181
110th Congress
An Act
To provide for the enactment of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal
Year 2008, as previously enrolled, with certain modifications to address the foreign
sovereign immunities provisions of title 28, United States Code, with respect
to the attachment of property in certain judgments against Iraq, the lapse of
statutory authorities for the payment of bonuses, special pays, and similar benefits
for members of the uniformed services, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TREATMENT OF EXPLANATORY STATEMENT.
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the ‘‘National
Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008’’.
(b) EXPLANATORY STATEMENT.—The Joint Explanatory Statement submitted by the Committee of Conference for the conference
report to accompany H.R. 1585 of the 110th Congress (Report
110–477) shall be deemed to be part of the legislative history
of this Act and shall have the same effect with respect to the
implementation of this Act as it would have had with respect
to the implementation of H.R. 1585, if such bill had been enacted.
Jan. 28, 2008
[H.R. 4986]
National Defense
Authorization
Act for Fiscal
Year 2008.
SEC. 2. ORGANIZATION OF ACT INTO DIVISIONS; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) DIVISIONS.—This Act is organized into three divisions as
follows:
(1) Division A—Department of Defense Authorizations.
(2) Division B—Military Construction Authorizations.
(3) Division C—Department of Energy National Security
Authorizations and Other Authorizations.
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for this Act
is as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; treatment of explanatory statement.
Sec. 2. Organization of Act into divisions; table of contents.
Sec. 3. Congressional defense committees.
DIVISION A—DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE AUTHORIZATIONS
TITLE I—PROCUREMENT
Subtitle A—Authorization of Appropriations
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Sec.
Sec.
Sec.
Sec.
Sec.
101.
102.
103.
104.
105.
Army.
Navy and Marine Corps.
Air Force.
Defense-wide activities.
National Guard and Reserve equipment.
Subtitle B—Army Programs
Sec. 111. Multiyear procurement authority for M1A2 Abrams System Enhancement
Package upgrades.
Sec. 112. Multiyear procurement authority for M2A3/M3A3 Bradley fighting vehicle
upgrades.
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122 STAT. 450
10 USC 1071
note.
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Deadline.
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PUBLIC LAW 110–181—JAN. 28, 2008
SEC. 1618. COMPREHENSIVE PLAN ON PREVENTION, DIAGNOSIS, MITIGATION, TREATMENT, AND REHABILITATION OF, AND
RESEARCH ON, TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY, POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER, AND OTHER MENTAL HEALTH
CONDITIONS IN MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES.
(a) COMPREHENSIVE STATEMENT OF POLICY.—The Secretary of
Defense and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall direct joint
planning among the Department of Defense, the military departments, and the Department of Veterans Affairs for the prevention,
diagnosis, mitigation, treatment, and rehabilitation of, and research
on, traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress disorder, and other
mental health conditions in members of the Armed Forces, including
planning for the seamless transition of such members from care
through the Department of Defense to care through the Department
of Veterans Affairs.
(b) COMPREHENSIVE PLAN REQUIRED.—Not later than 180 days
after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense
shall, in consultation with the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, submit
to the congressional defense committees a comprehensive plan for
programs and activities of the Department of Defense to prevent,
diagnose, mitigate, treat, research, and otherwise respond to traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress disorder, and other mental
health conditions in members of the Armed Forces, including—
(1) an assessment of the current capabilities of the Department for the prevention, diagnosis, mitigation, treatment, and
rehabilitation of, and research on, traumatic brain injury, posttraumatic stress disorder, and other mental health conditions
in members of the Armed Forces;
(2) the identification of gaps in current capabilities of the
Department for the prevention, diagnosis, mitigation, treatment, and rehabilitation of, and research on, traumatic brain
injury, post-traumatic stress disorder, and other mental health
conditions in members of the Armed Forces; and
(3) the identification of the resources required for the
Department in fiscal years 2009 through 2013 to address the
gaps in capabilities identified under paragraph (2).
(c) PROGRAM REQUIRED.—One of the programs contained in
the comprehensive plan submitted under subsection (b) shall be
a Department of Defense program, developed in collaboration with
the Department of Veterans Affairs, under which each member
of the Armed Forces who incurs a traumatic brain injury or posttraumatic stress disorder during service in the Armed Forces—
(1) is enrolled in the program; and
(2) receives treatment and rehabilitation meeting a
standard of care such that each individual who qualifies for
care under the program shall—
(A) be provided the highest quality, evidence-based
care in facilities that most appropriately meet the specific
needs of the individual; and
(B) be rehabilitated to the fullest extent possible using
up-to-date evidence-based medical technology, and physical
and medical rehabilitation practices and expertise.
(d) PROVISION OF INFORMATION REQUIRED.—The comprehensive
plan submitted under subsection (b) shall require the provision
of information by the Secretary of Defense to members of the
Armed Forces with traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress
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PUBLIC LAW 110–181—JAN. 28, 2008
122 STAT. 451
disorder, or other mental health conditions and their families about
their options with respect to the following:
(1) The receipt of medical and mental health care from
the Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans
Affairs.
(2) Additional options available to such members for treatment and rehabilitation of traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress disorder, and other mental health conditions.
(3) The options available, including obtaining a second
opinion, to such members for a referral to an authorized provider under chapter 55 of title 10, United States Code, as
determined under regulations prescribed by the Secretary of
Defense.
(e) ADDITIONAL ELEMENTS OF PLAN.—The comprehensive plan
submitted under subsection (b) shall include comprehensive proposals of the Department on the following:
(1) LEAD AGENT.—The designation by the Secretary of
Defense of a lead agent or executive agent for the Department
to coordinate development and implementation of the plan.
(2) DETECTION AND TREATMENT.—The improvement of
methods and mechanisms for the detection and treatment of
traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress disorder, and
other mental health conditions in members of the Armed Forces
in the field.
(3) REDUCTION OF PTSD.—The development of a plan for
reducing post traumatic-stress disorder, incorporating evidencebased preventive and early-intervention measures, practices,
or procedures that reduce the likelihood that personnel in combat will develop post-traumatic stress disorder or other stressrelated conditions (including substance abuse conditions) into—
(A) basic and pre-deployment training for enlisted
members of the Armed Forces, noncommissioned officers,
and officers;
(B) combat theater operations; and
(C) post-deployment service.
(4) RESEARCH.—Requirements for research on traumatic
brain injury, post-traumatic stress disorder, and other mental
health conditions including (in particular) research on pharmacological and other approaches to treatment for traumatic brain
injury, post-traumatic stress disorder, or other mental health
conditions, as applicable, and the allocation of priorities among
such research.
(5) DIAGNOSTIC CRITERIA.—The development, adoption, and
deployment of joint Department of Defense-Department of Veterans Affairs evidence-based diagnostic criteria for the detection
and evaluation of the range of traumatic brain injury, posttraumatic stress disorder, and other mental health conditions
in members of the Armed Forces, which criteria shall be
employed uniformly across the military departments in all
applicable circumstances, including provision of clinical care
and assessment of future deployability of members of the Armed
Forces.
(6) ASSESSMENT.—The development and deployment of evidence-based means of assessing traumatic brain injury, posttraumatic stress disorder, and other mental health conditions
in members of the Armed Forces, including a system of pre-
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PUBLIC LAW 110–181—JAN. 28, 2008
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deployment and post-deployment screenings of cognitive ability
in members for the detection of cognitive impairment.
(7) MANAGING AND MONITORING.—The development and
deployment of effective means of managing and monitoring
members of the Armed Forces with traumatic brain injury,
post-traumatic stress disorder, or other mental health conditions in the receipt of care for traumatic brain injury, posttraumatic stress disorder, or other mental health conditions,
as applicable, including the monitoring and assessment of treatment and outcomes.
(8) EDUCATION AND AWARENESS.—The development and
deployment of an education and awareness training initiative
designed to reduce the negative stigma associated with traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress disorder, and other
mental health conditions, and mental health treatment.
(9) EDUCATION AND OUTREACH.—The provision of education
and outreach to families of members of the Armed Forces
with traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress disorder,
or other mental health conditions on a range of matters relating
to traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress disorder, or
other mental health conditions, as applicable, including detection, mitigation, and treatment.
(10) RECORDING OF BLASTS.—A requirement that exposure
to a blast or blasts be recorded in the records of members
of the Armed Forces.
(11) GUIDELINES FOR BLAST INJURIES.—The development
of clinical practice guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment
of blast injuries in members of the Armed Forces, including,
but not limited to, traumatic brain injury.
(12) GENDER- AND ETHNIC GROUP-SPECIFIC SERVICES AND
TREATMENT.—The development of requirements, as appropriate,
for gender- and ethnic group-specific medical care services and
treatment for members of the Armed Forces who experience
mental health problems and conditions, including post-traumatic stress disorder, with specific regard to the availability
of, access to, and research and development requirements of
such needs.
(f) COORDINATION IN DEVELOPMENT.—The comprehensive plan
submitted under subsection (b) shall be developed in coordination
with the Secretary of the Army (who was designated by the Secretary of Defense as executive agent for the prevention, mitigation,
and treatment of blast injuries under section 256 of the National
Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2006 (Public Law 109–
163; 119 Stat. 3181; 10 U.S.C. 1071 note)).
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PUBLIC LAW 110–181—JAN. 28, 2008
122 STAT. 453
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Subtitle B—Centers of Excellence in the
Prevention, Diagnosis, Mitigation, Treatment, and Rehabilitation of Traumatic
Brain Injury, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, and Eye Injuries
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SEC. 1621. CENTER OF EXCELLENCE IN THE PREVENTION, DIAGNOSIS,
MITIGATION, TREATMENT, AND REHABILITATION OF
TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY.
10 USC 1071
note.
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Defense shall establish
within the Department of Defense a center of excellence in the
prevention, diagnosis, mitigation, treatment, and rehabilitation of
traumatic brain injury, including mild, moderate, and severe traumatic brain injury, to carry out the responsibilities specified in
subsection (c).
(b) PARTNERSHIPS.—The Secretary shall ensure that the Center
collaborates to the maximum extent practicable with the Department of Veterans Affairs, institutions of higher education, and
other appropriate public and private entities (including international entities) to carry out the responsibilities specified in subsection (c).
(c) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Center shall have responsibilities
as follows:
(1) To implement the comprehensive plan and strategy
for the Department of Defense, required by section 1618 of
this Act, for the prevention, diagnosis, mitigation, treatment,
and rehabilitation of traumatic brain injury, including research
on gender and ethnic group-specific health needs related to
traumatic brain injury.
(2) To provide for the development, testing, and dissemination within the Department of best practices for the treatment
of traumatic brain injury.
(3) To provide guidance for the mental health system of
the Department in determining the mental health and neurological health personnel required to provide quality mental
health care for members of the Armed Forces with traumatic
brain injury.
(4) To establish, implement, and oversee a comprehensive
program to train mental health and neurological health professionals of the Department in the treatment of traumatic brain
injury.
(5) To facilitate advancements in the study of the shortterm and long-term psychological effects of traumatic brain
injury.
(6) To disseminate within the military medical treatment
facilities of the Department best practices for training mental
health professionals, including neurological health professionals, with respect to traumatic brain injury.
(7) To conduct basic science and translational research
on traumatic brain injury for the purposes of understanding
the etiology of traumatic brain injury and developing preventive
interventions and new treatments.
(8) To develop programs and outreach strategies for families
of members of the Armed Forces with traumatic brain injury
Establishment.
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PUBLIC LAW 110–181—JAN. 28, 2008
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in order to mitigate the negative impacts of traumatic brain
injury on such family members and to support the recovery
of such members from traumatic brain injury.
(9) To conduct research on the mental health needs of
families of members of the Armed Forces with traumatic brain
injury and develop protocols to address any needs identified
through such research.
(10) To conduct longitudinal studies (using imaging technology and other proven research methods) on members of
the Armed Forces with traumatic brain injury to identify early
signs of Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, or other manifestations of neurodegeneration, as well as epilepsy, in such
members, in coordination with the studies authorized by section
721 of the John Warner National Defense Authorization Act
for Fiscal Year 2007 (Public Law 109–364; 120 Stat. 2294)
and other studies of the Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs that address the connection between
exposure to combat and the development of Alzheimer’s disease,
Parkinson’s disease, and other neurodegenerative disorders, as
well as epilepsy.
(11) To develop and oversee a long-term plan to increase
the number of mental health and neurological health professionals within the Department in order to facilitate the meeting
by the Department of the needs of members of the Armed
Forces with traumatic brain injury until their transition to
care and treatment from the Department of Veterans Affairs.
(12) To develop a program on comprehensive pain management, including management of acute and chronic pain, to
utilize current and develop new treatments for pain, and to
identify and disseminate best practices on pain management
related to traumatic brain injury.
(13) Such other responsibilities as the Secretary shall
specify.
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10 USC 1071
note.
SEC. 1622. CENTER OF EXCELLENCE IN PREVENTION, DIAGNOSIS, MITIGATION, TREATMENT, AND REHABILITATION OF POSTTRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER AND OTHER MENTAL
HEALTH CONDITIONS.
Establishment.
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Defense shall establish
within the Department of Defense a center of excellence in the
prevention, diagnosis, mitigation, treatment, and rehabilitation of
post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other mental health
conditions, including mild, moderate, and severe post-traumatic
stress disorder and other mental health conditions, to carry out
the responsibilities specified in subsection (c).
(b) PARTNERSHIPS.—The Secretary shall ensure that the center
collaborates to the maximum extent practicable with the National
Center on Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder of the Department of
Veterans Affairs, institutions of higher education, and other appropriate public and private entities (including international entities)
to carry out the responsibilities specified in subsection (c).
(c) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The center shall have responsibilities
as follows:
(1) To implement the comprehensive plan and strategy
for the Department of Defense, required by section 1618 of
this Act, for the prevention, diagnosis, mitigation, treatment,
and rehabilitation of post-traumatic stress disorder and other
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122 STAT. 455
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mental health conditions, including research on gender- and
ethnic group-specific health needs related to post-traumatic
stress disorder and other mental health conditions.
(2) To provide for the development, testing, and dissemination within the Department of best practices for the treatment
of post-traumatic stress disorder.
(3) To provide guidance for the mental health system of
the Department in determining the mental health and neurological health personnel required to provide quality mental
health care for members of the Armed Forces with post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental health conditions.
(4) To establish, implement, and oversee a comprehensive
program to train mental health and neurological health professionals of the Department in the treatment of post-traumatic
stress disorder and other mental health conditions.
(5) To facilitate advancements in the study of the shortterm and long-term psychological effects of post-traumatic
stress disorder and other mental health conditions.
(6) To disseminate within the military medical treatment
facilities of the Department best practices for training mental
health professionals, including neurological health professionals, with respect to post-traumatic stress disorder and other
mental health conditions.
(7) To conduct basic science and translational research
on post-traumatic stress disorder for the purposes of understanding the etiology of post-traumatic stress disorder and
developing preventive interventions and new treatments.
(8) To develop programs and outreach strategies for families
of members of the Armed Forces with post-traumatic stress
disorder and other mental health conditions in order to mitigate
the negative impacts of post-traumatic stress disorder and other
mental health conditions on such family members and to support the recovery of such members from post-traumatic stress
disorder and other mental health conditions.
(9) To conduct research on the mental health needs of
families of members of the Armed Forces with post-traumatic
stress disorder and other mental health conditions and develop
protocols to address any needs identified through such research.
(10) To develop and oversee a long-term plan to increase
the number of mental health and neurological health professionals within the Department in order to facilitate the meeting
by the Department of the needs of members of the Armed
Forces with post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental
health conditions until their transition to care and treatment
from the Department of Veterans Affairs.
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SEC. 1623. CENTER OF EXCELLENCE IN PREVENTION, DIAGNOSIS, MITIGATION, TREATMENT, AND REHABILITATION OF MILITARY EYE INJURIES.
10 USC 1071
note.
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Defense shall establish
within the Department of Defense a center of excellence in the
prevention, diagnosis, mitigation, treatment, and rehabilitation of
military eye injuries to carry out the responsibilities specified in
subsection (c).
(b) PARTNERSHIPS.—The Secretary shall ensure that the center
collaborates to the maximum extent practicable with the Secretary
of Veterans Affairs, institutions of higher education, and other
Establishment.
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Deadlines.
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Notification.
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PUBLIC LAW 110–181—JAN. 28, 2008
appropriate public and private entities (including international entities) to carry out the responsibilities specified in subsection (c).
(c) RESPONSIBILITIES.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The center shall—
(A) implement a comprehensive plan and strategy for
the Department of Defense, as developed by the Secretary
of Defense, for a registry of information for the tracking
of the diagnosis, surgical intervention or other operative
procedure, other treatment, and follow up for each case
of significant eye injury incurred by a member of the Armed
Forces while serving on active duty;
(B) ensure the electronic exchange with the Secretary
of Veterans Affairs of information obtained through
tracking under subparagraph (A); and
(C) enable the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to access
the registry and add information pertaining to additional
treatments or surgical procedures and eventual visual outcomes for veterans who were entered into the registry
and subsequently received treatment through the Veterans
Health Administration.
(2) DESIGNATION OF REGISTRY.—The registry under this
subsection shall be known as the ‘‘Military Eye Injury Registry’’
(hereinafter referred to as the ‘‘Registry’’).
(3) CONSULTATION IN DEVELOPMENT.—The center shall
develop the Registry in consultation with the ophthalmological
specialist personnel and optometric specialist personnel of the
Department of Defense and the ophthalmological specialist personnel and optometric specialist personnel of the Department
of Veterans Affairs. The mechanisms and procedures of the
Registry shall reflect applicable expert research on military
and other eye injuries.
(4) MECHANISMS.—The mechanisms of the Registry for
tracking under paragraph (1)(A) shall ensure that each military
medical treatment facility or other medical facility shall submit
to the center for inclusion in the Registry information on the
diagnosis, surgical intervention or other operative procedure,
other treatment, and follow up for each case of eye injury
described in that paragraph as follows (to the extent applicable):
(A) Not later than 30 days after surgery or other operative intervention, including a surgery or other operative
intervention carried out as a result of a follow-up examination.
(B) Not later than 180 days after the significant eye
injury is reported or recorded in the medical record.
(5) COORDINATION OF CARE AND BENEFITS.—(A) The center
shall provide notice to the Blind Rehabilitation Service of the
Department of Veterans Affairs and to the eye care services
of the Veterans Health Administration on each member of
the Armed Forces described in subparagraph (B) for purposes
of ensuring the coordination of the provision of ongoing eye
care and visual rehabilitation benefits and services by the
Department of Veterans Affairs after the separation or release
of such member from the Armed Forces.
(B) A member of the Armed Forces described in this
subparagraph is a member of the Armed Forces as follows:
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122 STAT. 457
(i) A member with a significant eye injury incurred
while serving on active duty, including a member with
visual dysfunction related to traumatic brain injury.
(ii) A member with an eye injury incurred while serving
on active duty who has a visual acuity of 20/200 or less
in the injured eye.
(iii) A member with an eye injury incurred while
serving on active duty who has a loss of peripheral vision
resulting in 20 degrees or less of visual field in the injured
eye.
(d) UTILIZATION OF REGISTRY INFORMATION.—The Secretary of
Defense and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall jointly ensure
that information in the Registry is available to appropriate ophthalmological and optometric personnel of the Department of Defense
and the Department of Veterans Affairs for purposes of encouraging
and facilitating the conduct of research, and the development of
best practices and clinical education, on eye injuries incurred by
members of the Armed Forces in combat.
(e) INCLUSION OF RECORDS OF OIF/OEF VETERANS.—The Secretary of Defense shall take appropriate actions to include in the
Registry such records of members of the Armed Forces who incurred
an eye injury while serving on active duty on or after September
11, 2001, but before the establishment of the Registry, as the
Secretary considers appropriate for purposes of the Registry.
(f) TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY POST TRAUMATIC VISUAL SYNDROME.—In carrying out the program at Walter Reed Army Medical
Center, District of Columbia, on traumatic brain injury post traumatic visual syndrome, the Secretary of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs shall jointly provide for the conduct of
a cooperative program for members of the Armed Forces and veterans with traumatic brain injury by military medical treatment
facilities of the Department of Defense and medical centers of
the Department of Veterans Affairs selected for purposes of this
subsection for purposes of vision screening, diagnosis, rehabilitative
management, and vision research, including research on prevention,
on visual dysfunction related to traumatic brain injury.
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SEC. 1624. REPORT ON ESTABLISHMENT OF CENTERS OF EXCELLENCE.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall submit
to Congress a report on—
(1) the establishment of the center of excellence in prevention, diagnosis, mitigation, treatment, and rehabilitation of
traumatic brain injury under section 1621;
(2) the establishment of the center of excellence in prevention, diagnosis, mitigation, treatment, and rehabilitation of
post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental health conditions under section 1622; and
(3) the establishment of the center of excellence in prevention, diagnosis, mitigation, treatment, and rehabilitation of military eye injuries under section 1623.
(b) MATTERS COVERED.—The report shall, for each such center—
(1) describe in detail the activities and proposed activities
of such center; and
(2) assess the progress of such center in discharging the
responsibilities of such center.
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126 STAT. 1632
PUBLIC LAW 112–239—JAN. 2, 2013
Public Law 112–239
112th Congress
An Act
Jan. 2, 2013
[H.R. 4310]
National Defense
Authorization
Act for Fiscal
Year 2013.
To authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2013 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy, to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year,
and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘National Defense Authorization
Act for Fiscal Year 2013’’.
SEC. 2. ORGANIZATION OF ACT INTO DIVISIONS; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) DIVISIONS.—This Act is organized into four divisions as
follows:
(1) Division A—Department of Defense Authorizations.
(2) Division B—Military Construction Authorizations.
(3) Division C—Department of Energy National Security
Authorizations and Other Authorizations.
(4) Division D—Funding Tables.
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for this Act
is as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title.
Sec. 2. Organization of Act into divisions; table of contents.
Sec. 3. Congressional defense committees.
DIVISION A—DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE AUTHORIZATIONS
TITLE I—PROCUREMENT
Subtitle A—Authorization of Appropriations
Sec. 101. Authorization of appropriations.
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Subtitle B—Army Programs
Sec. 111. Multiyear procurement authority for Army CH–47 helicopters.
Sec. 112. Reports on airlift requirements of the Army.
Subtitle C—Navy Programs
Sec. 121. Extension of Ford class aircraft carrier construction authority.
Sec. 122. Multiyear procurement authority for Virginia class submarine program.
Sec. 123. Multiyear procurement authority for Arleigh Burke class destroyers and
associated systems.
Sec. 124. Limitation on availability of amounts for second Ford class aircraft carrier.
Sec. 125. Refueling and complex overhaul of the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln.
Sec. 126. Designation of mission modules of the Littoral Combat Ship as a major
defense acquisition program.
Sec. 127. Report on Littoral Combat Ship designs.
Sec. 128. Comptroller General review of Littoral Combat Ship program.
Sec. 129. Sense of Congress on importance of engineering in early stages of shipbuilding.
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PUBL239
NDAA for Fiscal Year 2013, P.L. 112-239, Sec. 725
126 STAT. 1806
PUBLIC LAW 112–239—JAN. 2, 2013
Forces described in subsection (b) to volunteer or be considered
for employment as peer counselors under the following:
(A) The peer support counseling program carried out
by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs under subsection (j)
of section 1720F of title 38, United States Code, as part
of the comprehensive program for suicide prevention among
veterans under subsection (a) of such section.
(B) The peer support counseling program carried out
by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs under section 304(a)(1)
of the Caregivers and Veterans Omnibus Health Services
Act of 2010 (Public Law 111–163; 124 Stat. 1150; 38 U.S.C.
1712A note).
(2) TRAINING.—Any member participating in a peer support
counseling program under paragraph (1) shall receive the
training for peer counselors under section 1720F(j)(2) of title
38, United States Code, or section 304(c) of the Caregivers
and Veterans Omnibus Health Services Act of 2010, as
applicable, before performing peer support counseling duties
under such program.
(b) COVERED MEMBERS.—Members of the Armed Forces
described in this subsection are the following:
(1) Members of the reserve components of the Armed Forces
who are demobilizing after deployment in a theater of combat
operations, including, in particular, members who participated
in combat against the enemy while so deployed.
(2) Members of the regular components of the Armed Forces
separating from active duty who have been deployed in a theater of combat operations in which such members participated
in combat against the enemy.
SEC. 725. RESEARCH AND MEDICAL PRACTICE ON MENTAL HEALTH
CONDITIONS.
10 USC 1071
note.
(a) RESEARCH AND PRACTICE.—The Secretary of Defense shall
provide for the translation of research on the diagnosis and treatment of mental health conditions into policy on medical practices.
(b) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the Committees
on Armed Services of the House of Representatives and the Senate
a report on the translation of research into policy as described
in subsection (a). The report shall include the following:
(1) A summary of the efforts of the Department of Defense
to carry out such translation.
(2) A description of any policy established pursuant to
subsection (a).
(3) Additional legislative or administrative actions the Secretary considers appropriate with respect to such translation.
38 USC 1712A
note.
SEC. 726. TRANSPARENCY IN MENTAL HEALTH CARE SERVICES PROVIDED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.
(a) MEASUREMENT OF MENTAL HEALTH CARE SERVICES.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than December 31, 2013, the
Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall develop and implement a
comprehensive set of measures to assess mental health care
services furnished by the Department of Veterans Affairs.
(2) ELEMENTS.—The measures developed and implemented
under paragraph (1) shall provide an accurate and comprehensive assessment of the following:
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PUBL239
NDAA for Fiscal Year 2013, P.L. 112-239, Sec. 739
126 STAT. 1822
PUBLIC LAW 112–239—JAN. 2, 2013
SEC. 739. PLAN TO ELIMINATE GAPS AND REDUNDANCIES IN PROGRAMS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE ON PSYCHOLOGICAL HEALTH AND TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY.
(a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—Congress supports the efforts of the
Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the Secretary of Defense to educate members of the Armed Forces, veterans, the families of such
members and veterans, the medical community, and the public
with respect to the causes, symptoms, and treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder.
(b) PLAN.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the date
of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall
submit to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate
and the House of Representatives a plan to improve the
coordination and integration of the programs of the Department
of Defense that address traumatic brain injury and the psychological health of members of the Armed Forces.
(2) ELEMENTS.—The plan under paragraph (1) shall include
the following:
(A) Identification of—
(i) any gaps in services and treatments provided
by the programs of the Department of Defense that
address traumatic brain injury and the psychological
health of members of the Armed Forces; and
(ii) any unnecessary redundancies in such programs.
(B) A plan for mitigating the gaps and redundancies
identified under subparagraph (A).
(C) Identification of the official within the Department
who will be responsible for leading the implementation
of the plan described in paragraph (1).
TITLE VIII—ACQUISITION POLICY, ACQUISITION MANAGEMENT, AND RELATED MATTERS
Subtitle A—Acquisition Policy and Management
Sec. 801. Treatment of procurements on behalf of the Department of Defense
through the Work for Others program of the Department of Energy.
Sec. 802. Review and justification of pass-through contracts.
Sec. 803. Availability of amounts in Defense Acquisition Workforce Development
Fund.
Sec. 804. Department of Defense policy on contractor profits.
Sec. 805. Modification of authorities on internal controls for procurements on behalf
of the Department of Defense by certain nondefense agencies.
Sec. 806. Extension of authority relating to management of supply-chain risk.
Sec. 807. Sense of Congress on the continuing progress of the Department of Defense in implementing its Item Unique Identification Initiative.
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Subtitle B—Provisions Relating to Major Defense Acquisition Programs
Sec. 811. Limitation on use of cost-type contracts.
Sec. 812. Estimates of potential termination liability of contracts for the development or production of major defense acquisition programs.
Sec. 813. Technical change regarding programs experiencing critical cost growth
due to change in quantity purchased.
Sec. 814. Repeal of requirement to review ongoing programs initiated before enactment of Milestone B certification and approval process.
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PUBL239
Presidential Executive Order No. 13625, 2012
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
For Immediate Release
August 31, 2012
EXECUTIVE ORDER
- - - - - - -
IMPROVING ACCESS TO MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES FOR
VETERANS, SERVICE MEMBERS, AND MILITARY FAMILIES
By the authority vested in me as President by the
Constitution and the laws of the United States of America,
I hereby order as follows:
Section 1. Policy. Since September 11, 2001, more
than two million service members have deployed to Iraq or
Afghanistan. Long deployments and intense combat conditions
require optimal support for the emotional and mental health
needs of our service members and their families. The need for
mental health services will only increase in the coming years
as the Nation deals with the effects of more than a decade
of conflict. Reiterating and expanding upon the commitment
outlined in my Administration's 2011 report, entitled
"Strengthening Our Military Families," we have an obligation
to evaluate our progress and continue to build an integrated
network of support capable of providing effective mental health
services for veterans, service members, and their families.
Our public health approach must encompass the practices of
disease prevention and the promotion of good health for all
military populations throughout their lifespans, both within the
health care systems of the Departments of Defense and Veterans
Affairs and in local communities. Our efforts also must
focus on both outreach to veterans and their families and the
provision of high quality mental health treatment to those in
need. Coordination between the Departments of Veterans Affairs
and Defense during service members' transition to civilian life
is essential to achieving these goals.
Ensuring that all veterans, service members (Active, Guard,
and Reserve alike), and their families receive the support they
deserve is a top priority for my Administration. As part of our
ongoing efforts to improve all facets of military mental health,
this order directs the Secretaries of Defense, Health and Human
Services, Education, Veterans Affairs, and Homeland Security to
expand suicide prevention strategies and take steps to meet the
current and future demand for mental health and substance abuse
treatment services for veterans, service members, and their
families.
Sec. 2. Suicide Prevention. (a) By December 31, 2012,
the Department of Veterans Affairs, in continued collaboration
with the Department of Health and Human Services, shall expand
the capacity of the Veterans Crisis Line by 50 percent to ensure
that veterans have timely access, including by telephone, text,
or online chat, to qualified, caring responders who can help
address immediate crises and direct veterans to appropriate
2
care. Further, the Department of Veterans Affairs shall ensure
that any veteran identifying him or herself as being in crisis
connects with a mental health professional or trained mental
health worker within 24 hours. The Department of Veterans
Affairs also shall expand the number of mental health
professionals who are available to see veterans beyond
traditional business hours.
(b) The Departments of Veterans Affairs and Defense shall
jointly develop and implement a national suicide prevention
campaign focused on connecting veterans and service members to
mental health services. This 12-month campaign, which shall
begin on September 1, 2012, will focus on the positive benefits
of seeking care and encourage veterans and service members to
proactively reach out to support services.
(c) To provide the best mental health and substance abuse
prevention, education, and outreach support to our military and
their family members, the Department of Defense shall review all
of its existing mental health and substance abuse prevention,
education, and outreach programs across the military services
and the Defense Health Program to identify the key program
areas that produce the greatest impact on quality and outcomes,
and rank programs within each of these program areas using
metrics that assess their effectiveness. By the end of Fiscal
Year 2014, existing program resources shall be realigned to
ensure that highly ranked programs are implemented across all of
the military services and less effective programs are replaced.
Sec. 3. Enhanced Partnerships Between the Department of
Veterans Affairs and Community Providers. (a) Within 180 days
of the date of this order, in those service areas where the
Department of Veterans Affairs has faced challenges in hiring
and placing mental health service providers and continues to
have unfilled vacancies or long wait times, the Departments of
Veterans Affairs and Health and Human Services shall establish
pilot projects whereby the Department of Veterans Affairs
contracts or develops formal arrangements with community-based
providers, such as community mental health clinics, community
health centers, substance abuse treatment facilities, and
rural health clinics, to test the effectiveness of community
partnerships in helping to meet the mental health needs of
veterans in a timely way. Pilot sites shall ensure that
consumers of community-based services continue to be integrated
into the health care systems of the Department of Veterans
Affairs. No fewer than 15 pilot projects shall be established.
(b) The Department of Veterans Affairs shall develop
guidance for its medical centers and service networks that
supports the use of community mental health services, including
telehealth services and substance abuse services, where
appropriate, to meet demand and facilitate access to care.
This guidance shall include recommendations that medical centers
and service networks use community-based providers to help meet
veterans' mental health needs where objective criteria, which
the Department of Veterans Affairs shall define in the form
of specific metrics, demonstrate such needs. Such objective
criteria should include estimates of wait-times for needed care
that exceed established targets.
3
(c) The Departments of Health and Human Services and
Veterans Affairs shall develop a plan for a rural mental
health recruitment initiative to promote opportunities for the
Department of Veterans Affairs and rural communities to share
mental health providers when demand is insufficient for either
the Department of Veterans Affairs or the communities to
independently support a full-time provider.
Sec. 4. Expanded Department of Veterans Affairs Mental
Health Services Staffing. The Secretary of Veterans Affairs
shall, by December 31, 2013, hire and train 800 peer-to-peer
counselors to empower veterans to support other veterans and
help meet mental health care needs. In addition, the Secretary
shall continue to use all appropriate tools, including
collaborative arrangements with community-based providers,
pay-setting authorities, loan repayment and scholarships,
and partnerships with health care workforce training programs
to accomplish the Department of Veterans Affairs' goal of
recruiting, hiring, and placing 1,600 mental health
professionals by June 30, 2013. The Department of Veterans
Affairs also shall evaluate the reporting requirements
associated with providing mental health services and reduce
paperwork requirements where appropriate. In addition, the
Department of Veterans Affairs shall update its management
performance evaluation system to link performance to meeting
mental health service demand.
Sec. 5. Improved Research and Development. (a) The
lack of full understanding of the underlying mechanisms of
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), other mental health
conditions, and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) has hampered
progress in prevention, diagnosis, and treatment. In order
to improve the coordination of agency research into these
conditions and reduce the number of affected men and women
through better prevention, diagnosis, and treatment, the
Departments of Defense, Veterans Affairs, Health and Human
Services, and Education, in coordination with the Office of
Science and Technology Policy, shall establish a National
Research Action Plan within 8 months of the date of this order.
(b) The National Research Action Plan shall include
strategies to establish surrogate and clinically actionable
biomarkers for early diagnosis and treatment effectiveness;
develop improved diagnostic criteria for TBI; enhance our
understanding of the mechanisms responsible for PTSD, related
injuries, and neurological disorders following TBI; foster
development of new treatments for these conditions based on a
better understanding of the underlying mechanisms; improve data
sharing between agencies and academic and industry researchers
to accelerate progress and reduce redundant efforts without
compromising privacy; and make better use of electronic health
records to gain insight into the risk and mitigation of PTSD,
TBI, and related injuries. In addition, the National Research
Action Plan shall include strategies to support collaborative
research to address suicide prevention.
(c) The Departments of Defense and Health and Human
Services shall engage in a comprehensive longitudinal mental
health study with an emphasis on PTSD, TBI, and related injuries
to develop better prevention, diagnosis, and treatment options.
Agencies shall continue ongoing collaborative research efforts,
4
with an aim to enroll at least 100,000 service members by
December 31, 2012, and include a plan for long-term follow-up
with enrollees through a coordinated effort with the Department
of Veterans Affairs.
Sec. 6. Military and Veterans Mental Health Interagency
Task Force. There is established an Interagency Task Force
on Military and Veterans Mental Health (Task Force), to be
co-chaired by the Secretaries of Defense, Veterans Affairs, and
Health and Human Services, or their designated representatives.
(a) Membership. In addition to the Co-Chairs, the Task
Force shall consist of representatives from:
(i)
the Department of Education;
(ii)
the Office of Management and Budget;
(iii)
the Domestic Policy Council;
(iv)
the National Security Staff;
(v)
the Office of Science and Technology Policy;
(vi)
the Office of National Drug Control Policy; and
(vii) such other executive departments, agencies, or
offices as the Co-Chairs may designate.
A member agency of the Task Force shall designate a
full-time officer or employee of the Federal Government to
perform the Task Force functions.
(b) Mission. Member agencies shall review relevant
statutes, policies, and agency training and guidance to identify
reforms and take actions that facilitate implementation of the
strategies outlined in this order. Member agencies shall work
collaboratively on these strategies and also create an inventory
of mental health and substance abuse programs and activities to
inform this work.
(c)
Functions.
(i)
Not later than 180 days after the date of this
order, the Task Force shall submit recommendations to
the President on strategies to improve mental health
and substance abuse treatment services for veterans,
service members, and their families. Every year
thereafter, the Task Force shall provide to the
President a review of agency actions to enhance mental
health and substance abuse treatment services for
veterans, service members, and their families
consistent with this order, as well as provide
additional recommendations for action as appropriate.
The Task Force shall define specific goals and metrics
that will aid in measuring progress in improving
mental health strategies. The Task Force will
include cost analysis in the development of all
recommendations, and will ensure any new requirements
are supported within existing resources.
5
(ii)
In addition to coordinating and reviewing
agency efforts to enhance veteran and military mental
health services pursuant to this order, the Task Force
shall evaluate:
(1) agency efforts to improve care quality and
ensure that the Departments of Defense and
Veterans Affairs and community-based mental
health providers are trained in the most current
evidence-based methodologies for treating PTSD,
TBI, depression, related mental health
conditions, and substance abuse;
(2) agency efforts to improve awareness and
reduce stigma for those needing to seek care; and
(3) agency research efforts to improve the
prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of TBI,
PTSD, and related injuries, and explore the need
for an external research portfolio review.
(iii) In performing its functions, the Task Force
shall consult with relevant nongovernmental experts
and organizations as necessary.
Sec. 7. General Provisions. (a) This order shall be
implemented consistent with applicable law and subject to the
availability of appropriations.
(b) Nothing in this order shall be construed to impair or
otherwise affect:
(i)
the authority granted by law to an executive
department or agency, or the head thereof; or
(ii) the functions of the Director of the Office
of Management and Budget relating to budgetary,
administrative, or legislative proposals.
(c) This order is not intended to, and does not, create
any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at
law or in equity by any party against the United States, its
departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees,
or agents, or any other person.
BARACK OBAMA
THE WHITE HOUSE,
August 31, 2012.
# # #
DoD FY15 Budget Request Overview March 2014 – Chapter 8: Performance Improvement
Overview – FY 2015 Defense Budget
8. PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENT
8.1 INTRODUCTION
Purpose
This chapter satisfies certain requirements of the Government Performance and Results Act of
1993 (GPRA), the GPRA Modernization Act (GPRAMA) of 2010, and Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) Circular A-11 – all of which call for integration of annual performance goals and
results with Congressional budget justifications. This chapter complements the appropriationspecific budget justification information that is submitted to Congress by providing:
•
A performance-focused articulation of the Defense Department’s strategic goals and
objectives; and
•
A limited number of Department-wide performance improvement priorities for seniorlevel management to focus on over the current and budget year.
The Department looks forward to working with the Administration and Congress to meet the
challenge of creating more effective and efficient operations, while delivering a high-value return
for the American taxpayer’s investment in the Defense Department.
DoD Mission and Organizational Structure
The mission of the Department of Defense (DoD) is to provide the military forces needed to
deter war, to win wars if needed, and to protect the security of the United States. Since the
creation of America’s first army in 1775, the Department and its predecessor organizations have
evolved into a global presence of over 3 million individuals, stationed in more than 140 countries
and dedicated to defending the United States by deterring and defeating aggression and
coercion in critical regions. Details on major operating components, Military Departments, and
DoD geographic spread can be found on www.defense.gov/osd. The Department is also one of
the nation’s largest employers, with approximately 1.4 million personnel on active duty,
782,000 civilians, and 835,000 men and women in the Selected Reserve of the National Guard
and Reserve forces. There are also more than 2 million military retirees and family members
receiving benefits.
DoD Performance Governance
Ultimate responsibility for performance improvement in the Defense Department rests with the
Deputy Secretary of Defense as the Chief Management Officer (CMO) and Chief Operating
Officer, pursuant to the GPRAMA of 2010. Principal Staff Assistants (PSAs) within the Office of
the Secretary of Defense (OSD) are responsible for recommending performance goals and
achieving results for their respective functional oversight areas.
Title 5, United States Code, section 4312 and Office of Personnel Management (OPM)
implementing instructions require performance evaluations for DoD’s Senior Executive Service
members and Senior Level/Scientific and Technical professionals to be based on both individual
and organizational performance. The OPM further requires that each Agency describe, at the
end of the performance rating period, how it assessed organizational performance and how it
communicated that performance to rating and reviewing officials and members of Performance
Review Boards to inform individual performance decisions. The Department uses its Annual
Performance Report, along with other PSA and DoD Component-specific performance results,
as the basis for DoD-wide organizational assessment and senior level personnel evaluations.
CHAPTER 8
PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENT
8-1
Overview – FY 2015 Defense Budget
A comprehensive post-deployment health assessment is a critical tool in assessing the health of
Service members and identifying potential injuries, both physical and emotional. Emerging
science and DoD programs and policies have supported the early detection of non-visible
injuries such as Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder which could
lead to prompt treatment.
To incorporate improvements into post-deployment health
assessments, the Military Health System (MHS) now uses a more comprehensive postdeployment health assessment instrument that is designed to facilitate early identification and
referral for care to ensure that those with post deployment injuries as a result of service to the
nation receive the treatment they need.
The Department also conducted an enterprise-wide review of all psychological health programs
in FY 2013 to identify programs that are producing measurably effective results and areas
where improvement is needed. This review identified best practices that the Department can
implement to continue improving the psychological and TBI care provided to service members
and their families.
Improving audit readiness across the Department is a critical step in achieving sustained cost
savings and improving business outcomes. A key component of the Department’s audit
readiness goal is validating the existence and accountability of mission critical assets such as
real property, military equipment, and inventory. The Department’s improved validation and
accountability have played a critical role in identifying and reducing excess inventory, and
resulted in significant savings from the Department’s approximately $30 billion of secondary
inventory (defined as inventory supplied by a different Military Service/Agency or residual
inventory not transferred to the General Services Administration). At mid-year in FY 2013, the
Department reduced excess inventory from 9.9 percent to 7.8 percent of on-hand secondary
inventory, generating real savings. The Department’s continued improvement in accountability
of mission critical assets will drive further reductions in excess secondary inventory.
Improvement Areas: While the Department is improving its overall care to wounded warriors,
the Department will focus on decreasing the IDES processing time in support of its commitment
to provide top-quality care to wounded warriors. The Department can also improve facility
energy performance, which will reduce overhead and headquarters costs and preserve mission
readiness.
The Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) share responsibility for
processing wounded warriors through IDES. While DoD has made considerable improvements
in providing top-quality physical and psychological care to its wounded warriors, the percent of
Service members who are processed through IDES within 295 days (Active) or 305 days
(Reserve) needs additional focus. In the fourth quarter of FY 2013, 32 percent of Service
members were processed through IDES within the given timeframe, which is below the target of
70 percent. This is primarily due to delays in the completion of the transition, proposed rating,
and benefits decision portions of the process, of which two are outside of DoD’s control. Over
the past year, the time to complete DoD-specific IDES activities (referral, Medical Evaluation
Board (MEB), Informal Physical Evaluation Board (PEB), and Transition) improved from an
average of 188 days to 147 days; the DoD-specific goal was 105 days. The Department also
provided, and will continue to provide, personnel to assist operations in a Seattle VA site to
expedite IDES case processing.
In December 2012, DoD assumed responsibility to download information from the Defense
Personnel Records Information Retrieval System and upload it into Virtual VA to assist VA in
completing IDES final benefit determinations sooner. The VA processes and practices have
impacted the Department’s ability to achieve the intended results. The Department will continue
to work with the VA in FY 2014 to improve the processes, practices, and interfaces that support
CHAPTER 8
PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENT
8-5
Overview – FY 2015 Defense Budget
our shared desire to ensure relevant, timely, and quality outcomes for our warriors and
veterans.
The Department manages a global property portfolio on 28 million acres with more than
563,000 facilities and a replacement value of nearly $828 billion. The DoD is the largest
consumer of energy in the Federal government, spending approximately $4 billion annually to
power these facilities. This infrastructure is critical to maintaining military readiness, and the
importance of sustaining these facilities cannot be overstated. The Department’s goal is to fund
facilities sustainment at a minimum of 90 percent of the Facilities Sustainment Model (FSM)
requirement. The FSM has been used since 2003 to estimate the annual sustainment funds the
Services need to budget to perform maintenance and repair activities needed to keep their
buildings and structures in good working order to maximize facility service life. The DoD
budgeted for 84 percent of the sustainment requirement in FY 2013 but, due to sequestration
reductions, it only obligated funding equal to 70 percent of the FSM requirement by the end of
FY 2013. The Department will require marked improvement in order to accomplish its goals in
this area.
Facilities maintenance supports the Department’s efforts to improve energy conservation and
efficiency, reduce operating costs and greenhouse gas emissions, and improve mission
effectiveness. The Department’s goal is to improve the average energy intensity of its buildings
by 30 percent in FY 2015 compared to the FY 2003 baseline. While the Department has made
significant improvements towards meeting the goal over the last two years, sequestration
reductions may make it difficult for the Department to achieve the FY 2015 goal.
FY 2012 - FY 2013 Agency Priority Goal (APG) Results
Pursuant to the GPRA Modernization Act of 2010, the Department established five APGs in
FY 2012, which were used to track the Department’s progress toward achieving priorities
throughout FY 2012 and FY 2013. Each of the five APGs is provided in its entirety, as follows:
•
Agency Priority Goal One: By September 30, 2013, the DoD will attain a passing
score on a comprehensive cyber security inspection that assesses compliance with
technical, operational, and physical security standards on an overwhelming majority of
inspected military cyberspace organizations resulting in improved hardening and cyber
defense.
•
Agency Priority Goal Two: By September 30, 2013, the DoD will improve the care and
transition of WII Warriors by: (1) increasing the use of Recovery Care Coordinators and
ensuring WII service members have active recovery plans; (2) improving effectiveness of
behavioral health programs and ensuring all service members complete quality postdeployment health screenings; and (3) accelerating the transition of WII service
members into veteran status by reducing the disability evaluation processing time.
•
Agency Priority Goal Three: By September 30, 2013, the DoD will: (1) improve its
facility energy performance by reducing average building energy intensity by 24 percent
from the 2003 baseline of 117,334 British Thermal Units (BTUs) per gross square foot,
and producing or procuring renewable energy equal to 13 percent of its annual electric
energy usage; and (2) improve its operational energy performance by establishing an
operational energy baseline with all available data on fuel use; developing a plan for
remediating data gaps; funding and implementing a comprehensive data plan;
establishing and executing operational energy performance targets based on this
comprehensive data for each Military Service and relevant agency.
•
Agency Priority Goal Four: By September 30, 2013, the DoD will improve its
acquisition process by ensuring that: 100 percent of Acquisition Category (ACAT) 1
CHAPTER 8
PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENT
8-6
Overview – FY 2015 Defense Budget
DoD STRATEGIC GOAL #4: PRESERVE AND ENHANCE THE ALL-VOLUNTEER FORCE.
DoD Forces and Infrastructure Category 2M: Defense Health Program
DoD Strategic Objective 4.1 2M:
Provide top-quality physical and psychological care to wounded warriors, while reducing growth in overall
healthcare costs.
* = Agency Priority Goal
Performance Goals
4.1.1-2M: Average percent
variance in Defense Health
Program annual cost per
equivalent life increase
compared to average civilian
sector increase (USD(P&R))
Long-Term Goals
4.1.1-2M: The DoD will maintain
an average Defense Health
Program (DHP) medical cost per
equivalent life increase at or
below the average healthcare
premium increase in the civilian
sector.
Prior Year Results
FY08 Actual:
FY09 Actual:
FY10 Actual:
FY11 Actual:
FY12 Actual:
FY13 Results
1.1%
6.7%
-1%
1.4%
-6.4%
FY13 Target: = 0%
FY13 Actual: -2.6%
67% FY09
FY13 Target: 82%
FY13 Actual: 85%
Contributing DoD Components: Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps
4.1.2-2M: percentage of
Armed Forces who meet
Individual Medical Readiness
(IMR) requirements
(USD(P&R))
4.1.2-2M: By FY 2015,
85 percent of the Armed Forces
will have an IMR that indicates
readiness for deployment.
FY08 Actual:
Actual: 69%
FY10 Actual:
FY11 Actual:
FY12 Actual:
74%
78%
84%
Contributing DoD Components: Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps
*4.1.3-2M: percent of Service
members who are processed
through the Integrated Disability
Evaluation System (IDES) within
295 days (Active) or 305 days
(Reserve) (USD(P&R))
*4.1.3-2M: By FY 2014,
80 percent of Service Members
will be processed through the
IDES within
295 days (Active) or 305 days
(Reserve) components.
FY08-11 Actual: Not available FY13 Target: 70%
FY12 Actual: 24%
FY13 Actual: 32%
Contributing DoD Components: Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps
*4.1.4-2M: percent of wounded,
ill and injured (WII) Service
members who are enrolled in a
Service recovery coordination
program and have established
an active recovery plan
administered by a DoD trained
Recovery Care Coordinator
(USD(P&R))
*4.1.4-2M: Assure that
100 percent of wounded, ill,
and injured (WII), who are
enrolled in a Service recovery
coordination program, will have
an established and active
recovery plan administered by
a DoD trained Recovery Care
Coordinator.
FY08-10 Actual: Not
available
FY12 Actual: 68%
FY13 Target: 100%
FY13 Actual: 100%
Contributing DoD Components: Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force
*4.1.5-2M: percent of
wounded, ill and injured (WII)
Service members who are
assigned to a DoD trained
Recovery Care Coordinator
(RCC) within 30 days of being
enrolled in a Wounded Warrior
Program (USD(P&R))
*4.1.5-2M: Assure that
100 percent of wounded, ill, and
injured (WII) Service members
will be assigned to a DoD
trained Recovery Care
Coordinator within 30 days of
being enrolled in a Wounded
Warrior Program.
FY08-10 Actual: Not
available
FY12 Actual: 70%
FY13 Target: 100%
FY13 Actual: 100%
Contributing DoD Components: Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force
CHAPTER 8
PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENT
8-21
Overview – FY 2015 Defense Budget
Performance Goals
*4.1.6-2M: percentage of
Psychological Health
Programs that have been
reviewed (USD(P&R))
Long-Term Goals
Prior Year Results
*4.1.6-2M: By September 30,
FY08-12 Actual: Not
2013, 100 percent of
available
Psychological Health programs
will be reviewed for measures of
effectiveness to identify
programs producing superior
results, those that are ineffective,
and those that need to establish
measures.
FY13 Results
FY13 Target: 100%
FY13 Actual: 100%
Contributing DoD Components: Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force
*4.1.7-2M: percentage of Armed
Services that have transitioned
to a more comprehensive postdeployment health assessment
(USD(P&R))
*4.1.7-2M: By September 30,
2013, 100 percent of the five
Armed Services will have
transitioned to a more
comprehensive postdeployment health assessment.
FY08-12 Actual: Not
available
FY13 Target: 100%
FY13 Actual: 100%
Contributing DoD Components: Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force, and U.S. Coast Guard
DoD Forces and Infrastructure Category 2P: Central Personnel Administration
DoD Strategic Objective 4.2-2P:
Ensure the Department has the right workforce size and mix, manage the deployment tempo with greater
predictability, and ensure the long-term viability of the Reserve Component.
Performance Goals
4.2.1-2P: percent variance in
Active component end strength
(USD(P&R))
Long-Term Goals
4.2.1-2P: For each fiscal year,
the DoD Active component end
strength will not vary by more
than three percent from the
SECDEF/NDAA- prescribed
end strength for that fiscal year.
Prior Year Results
FY08 Actual: 2.1%
FY09 Actual: 0.9%
FY13 Results
FY13 Target: +/-3%
FY13 Actual: -1.4%
FY10 Actual: 0.4%
FY11 Actual: -0.5%
FY12 Actual: -1.6%
Contributing DoD Components: Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force
4.2.2-2P: percent variance in
Reserve component end
strength (USD(P&R))
4.2.2-2P: For each fiscal year,
the DoD Reserve component
end strength will not vary by
more than three percent from
the SECDEF/NDAA- prescribed
end strength for that fiscal year.
FY08 Actual: 0%
FY09 Actual: 1%
FY13 Target: +/-3%
FY13 Actual: -0.86%
FY10 Actual: 0.6%
FY11 Actual: 0.2%
FY12 Actual: -0.8%
Contributing DoD Components: Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force
4.2.3-2P: percentage of the
Department’s active duty Army
who meet the planning
objectives for time deployed in
support of combat operations
versus time at home
4.2.3-2P: By FY 2015,
95 percent of active duty Army
personnel will meet the
deployment to dwell objective
of 1:2.
FY08-10 Actual: Not
available
FY11 Actual: 85.7% FY12
Actual: 91%
FY13 Target: 80%
FY08-10 Actual: Not
available
FY11 Actual: 95.6% FY12
Actual: 95%
FY13 Target: 95%
FY13 Actual: 98%
FY13 Actual: 96%
Contributing DoD Components: Army
4.2.4-2P: percentage of the
Department’s active duty Navy
who meet the planning
objectives for time deployed in
support of combat operations
versus time at home USD(P&R))
4.2.4-2P: Ensure at least
95 percent of active duty Navy
personnel will meet the
deployment to dwell objective of
1:2.
Contributing DoD Components: Navy
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Overview – FY 2015 Defense Budget
Strategic Objective 4.1-2M: Provide top-quality physical and psychological care to wounded warriors, while
reducing growth in overall healthcare costs.
Areas of Significant Improvement: The Department made substantial progress towards
ensuring that all Wounded, Ill, or Injured (WII) service members were enrolled in a Service
recovery coordination program and have an established active recovery plan administered by a
DoD trained Recovery Care Coordinator. At the end of FY 2013, all Services are reported
100 percent enrollment with an active recovery plan. During the 1st and 2nd quarters of
FY 2013, United States Air Force (USAF) Wounded Warrior Project (WWP) reported
experiencing some technical latency issues in a few locations due to information technology (IT)
infrastructure issues between USAF and the United States Marine Corps (USMC). However, as
of the fourth quarter of FY 2013, all latency issues have been resolved to ensure compliance
with the National Defense Authorization Act 2008 requirements. Both USAF and USMC WWPs
reported positive feedback on the resolution of all issues.
In addition, the Department has two new performance measures for FY 2013 that exceeded
their targets. In FY 2013, the Department successfully reviewed 100 percent of Psychological
Health Programs across all the Services and all Services successfully implemented a more
comprehensive Military Health Service (MHS) post-deployment health assessment.
The variance in Medical Cost Per Member has also remained within target parameters for the
second consecutive year. Historically lower medical inflation rates have helped with achieving
this outcome; the Department has also been successful in decreasing utilization through better
preventive care and other initiatives aimed at improving the medical treatment provided.
Areas of Challenges: The Integrated Disability Evaluation System (IDES) did not meet its
overall goals in FY 2013. Completion rates for DoD-specific, required activities (Referral stage,
MEB, Informal Physical Evaluation Board, and Transition) averaged 147 days against a goal of
105 days, with 60 percent of cases meeting the goal. This overall timeliness figure included an
average of 41 days in the Transition phase to allow Service members to take voluntary
allowable administrative absences for activities, such as house hunting or using accrued leave,
which are not part of the IDES process. The Department will continue to work with the VA in
FY 2014 to improve the processes, practices, and interfaces that support our shared desire to
ensure relevant, timely, and quality care for our warriors as they transition to veterans.
Mitigation Strategies: Staffing increases improved timeliness for the DoD portion of the initial
two phases of the IDES process, evidenced by DoD meeting the 100-day MEB phase goal in
Q4 (now at 7 consecutive months). The DoD continues to provide personnel to assist
operations at the VA Disability Rating Activity Site (DRAS) in Seattle to expedite the Physical
Evaluation Board phase of IDES case processing. Additionally, since December 2012, DoD has
uploaded over 9,000 DD Forms 214 into Virtual VA to assist VA in completing IDES final benefit
determinations sooner. The DoD Warrior Care Policy staff continues to focus on process and
resourcing to improve timeliness and monitor Services’ execution of the process.
Strategic Objective 4.2-2P: Ensure the Department has the right workforce size and mix, manage the
deployment tempo with greater predictability, and ensure the long-term viability of the Reserve Component.
Areas of Significant Improvement: Acknowledging that people are its greatest asset, the
Department is committed to ensuring it has the right workforce mix by managing the deployment
tempo with greater predictability and ensuring the long-term viability of the Reserve Component.
In FY 2013, the Department met its annual targets for seven of the performance measures for
this strategic objective. The percentage of Active Duty Service members across the all Services
who meet the planning objectives for time deployed in support of combat operations versus time
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Overview – FY 2015 Defense Budget
at home has exceeded targets for FY 2013 and has shown improvement since the end of
FY 2012. Additionally, the Department in aggregate has maintained Active Duty and Reserve
Component end strength within one percent of the end strength prescribed by the National
Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) and the Secretary of Defense, far exceeding the FY 2013
goal of three percent end strength variance.
Areas of Challenges: In FY 2013, the Department continues to struggle with meeting its
80 day target for external civilian hiring. The length of time for civilian hiring increased over the
first three fiscal quarters, but the number fell from 98 days to 94 days in the fourth quarter.
While the fourth quarter results represent a positive trend, the Department will continue to work
diligently to achieve its goal of 80 days. Challenges with achieving the target may be attributed
to Component hiring freezes, workforce furloughs, and concerns over future funding cuts. The
Department is also concerned that longer wait times for hiring and diminished recruiting
capabilities could potentially cause the DoD to lose interest from quality candidates. Mission
critical occupations are being recruited in very limited instances but require lengthy approvals or
waivers. There may also be delays associated with the Veterans Employment Opportunities Act
(VEOA) eligibility verification process for transitioning military Service members. Average TimeTo-Hire for VEOA appointments is approximately 145 percent higher than other types of
appointments. To date, veteran hires represent approximately 40 percent of external hires for
the DoD. Both of these factors warrant ongoing investigation and monitoring.
Mitigation Strategies: The Department must continue to aggressively recruit and retain
Service members of the requisite quality. Strategies and deployment schedules must be closely
monitored and adjusted to meet both operational requirements and support our personnel
during mobilization and deployments. Training, outreach, and collaboration are the key focus
areas for continued success with expeditious and efficient civilian hiring. The DoD is committed
to successful delivery of enhancements to key systems, increased reliability, and ease-of-use
for job seekers and system administrators. Additionally, efforts are underway to identify and
obtain appropriate hiring authorities and to remove barriers to efficient hiring of quality
candidates. The Department is also re-writing the existing Deploy 2 Dwell (D2D) ratio policy to
apply more broadly than the policy applied to Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) and Operation
Enduring Freedom (OEF).
Strategic Objective 4.3-2R: Better prepare and support families during the stress of multiple deployments.
Areas of Significant Improvement: The Department missed the targets on two measures, to
include percent of worldwide government-owned Family Housing inventory and percent of
worldwide inventory for government-owned permanent party Unaccompanied Housing (UH) at
good or fair (Q1-Q2) condition.
During FY 2013, the Department of Defense’s worldwide government-owned permanent party
Unaccompanied Housing (UH) inventory at good or fair (Q1-Q2) condition increased from
85 percent to 86 percent (excluding the Navy, this number would have been 91 percent). The
Army Q1/Q2 percentages slightly decreased from the end of FY 2012 to the end of FY 2013
(92 percent to 91 percent), the Marine Corps held steady (86 percent), and Navy and Air Force
increased, 41 percent to 50 percent and 96 percent to 98 percent, respectively. The worldwide
inventory of 316,523 bedrooms at the end of FY 2013 was split between the Services as follows:
Army, 44 percent; Marine Corps, 22 percent; Navy, 13 percent; and Air Force, 21 percent.
Regarding school standards, the Department is committed to supporting military families and is
working to ensure that 100 percent of DoD schools meet the OSD standards of good or fair by
the end of FY 2018. Since embarking on these improvements, the Department has met or
exceeded its targets and is on track to fulfill its FY 2018 target on time. During FY 2013, more
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Overview – FY 2015 Defense Budget
will require marked improvement in order to accomplish its goals in this area.
Congress denied the Department’s request for authority to conduct a Base Realignment and
Closure (BRAC) round in FY 2015. Without additional BRAC authority, the Department will
retain more bases than it needs to support its operations. Disposing of unneeded infrastructure
will reduce the sustainment requirement and allow DoD to focus existing resources on
sustainment requirements on remaining bases. The Department will continue working with the
Defense Components to develop and implement more effective and efficient methods to
eliminate excess infrastructure.
This includes proactively managing the Department’s
processes to meet historic preservation requirements (to address environmental preservation
concerns) and to expedite completion of required environmental mitigation.
The Department will continue working with host nations to avoid prolonged negotiations over the
return or disposal of excess facilities in foreign countries, thereby minimizing delays in removing
these facilities from the DOD real property inventory. The Department will also seek other
means of low or no cost disposal and divestiture of facilities within our existing authority, such
as privatization, public benefit conveyance, and returning the facility to the host nation.
Strategic Objective 5.2-2C: Protect critical DoD infrastructure and partner with other critical infrastructure
owners in government and the private sector to increase mission assurance.
Areas of Significant Improvement: In FY 2013, the Department made significant progress in
certifying DoD IT and National Security Systems (NSS); 95 percent of the Department’s IT and
National Security Systems (NSS) now meet Certification and Accreditation (C&A) requirements.
The Department met its goal for this measure and is confident it will achieve its goal of
99 percent C&A compliance in FY 2015. This is due in part to involvement of the DoD Chief
Information Officer (CIO) who has closely monitored compliance rates on a monthly basis and
military department CIOs who have applied industry best practices to rationalize their
applications and systems and convert them to virtualized environments.
By the end of FY 2013, the Department reduced the number of DoD data centers by
32.4 percent, exceeding its target of 31 percent.
Areas of Challenges: The Department transitioned 94 percent of DoD NIPRNet accounts to
cryptographic login capability by the end of FY 2013; this result is short of the goal of
95 percent.
Mitigation Strategies: An implementation plan is in place to achieve the goal in FY 2014.
Strategic Objective 5.3-2E: Improve acquisition processes, from requirements definition to the execution
phase, to acquire military-unique and commercial items.
Areas of Significant Improvement: Of the USD(AT&L)’s seven quarterly goals, four are
meeting their annual targets, and one demonstrates progress over FY 2012. The average rate
of MDAP cost growth from fourth quarter, FY13 (-1.42 percent) was significantly below the
annual goal of three percent. There was a significant improvement between FY 2012
(-0.3 percent) and FY 2013 (-1.42 percent) for this measure. Also, as of FY 2013, there were no
MDAP cost breaches for reasons other than approved changes in quantity. The average MDAP
cycle growth percentage time showed positive improvements over the previous year, although it
did not meet the annual target of less than or equal to five percent. All ACAT 1 programs going
through milestone reviews presented affordability analyses and competitive strategies.
Changes to the acquisition policy will continue to have positive future effects on MDAP
execution. These changes were directed by the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition,
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Overview – FY 2015 Defense Budget
with an increased focus on identifying more opportunities for small businesses.
“Should Cost” Management also receives systematic emphasis throughout the program lifecycle. Should Cost is a management tool designed to proactively target cost reduction and
drive productivity improvement into programs. It challenges program managers to identify and
achieve savings below the budgeted most likely costs. The objective is to seek out and
eliminate low-value or unnecessary elements of program cost to motivate better cost
performance wherever possible, and to reward those that succeed in achieving those goals.
Affordability and investment analysis has been institutionalized to drive program affordability
and enforce affordability caps. Affordability analysis examines competing Component fiscal
demands for production and sustainment within a relevant portfolio of products to reveal the lifecycle cost and inventory implications of the proposed new products within the portfolio.
However, when program schedules are stretched due to overall affordability constraints,
program costs may increase.
To improve upon the percentage of contract obligations that are competitively awarded, the
Department continues to share best practices at quarterly competition meetings and is exploring
initiatives to support the BBP 2.0 competition guidance. The BBP 2.0 will promote competition
by emphasizing how vital it is to create and maintain competitive environments when acquiring
both products and services. The Department is also taking the following steps to help mitigate
the challenges to competition:
•
Identify and track the specific factors that affect the competition rate, such as foreign
military sales, and consider this information when setting annual competition goals for
Components.
•
Develop guidance to enable the Components to apply lessons learned from past
procurements to increase competition for the same or similar good and services in follow
on procurements.
•
Implement tools using Federal Procurement Data Systems (FPDS) and Product Service
Code data to help identify opportunities to increase competition for goods and services.
Strategic Objective 5.4-2L: Provide more effective and efficient logistical support to forces abroad.
Areas of Significant Improvement: In FY 2013, four of the six logistics support measures met
their annual targets. The Army and Air Force reduced Customer Wait Times (CWTs) to meet
goal, while the Navy reduced CWT to 15.5 days compared to a target of 15 days. Perfect Order
Fulfillment exceeded its target every quarter, and the percentage of excess on-hand secondary
item inventory, an annual measure, was 7.2 percent compared to a target of 10 percent.
Areas of Challenges: The Navy’s cumulative CWT performance of 15.5 days was driven by a
high of 19.6 days for March 2013. The issues were addressed and the Navy’s performance in
the subsequent months has been well within the goal of 15 days (April, 13.5 days; May, 13.8
days; June, 12 days; July, 13.9 days; August, 14.3 days; and September, 14.6 days).
The percent of excess on-order performance (7.6 percent) is 1.3 percent above FY 2013 target
(6.3 percent) due to declining customer demand. As the drawdown in Afghanistan operations
tempo increases, requirements for new procurements are decreasing at a rate faster than
contracts are being reviewed and terminated.
Mitigation Strategies: The Navy continues to closely monitor its CWT measure and may reevaluate its goal in light of budgetary uncertainties and the changing mix of items being ordered
and management decisions. All measures associated with logistics support will continue to be
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White House Executive Actions. Joint Fact Sheet: DoD and VA Take New Steps to
Support the Mental Health Needs of Service Members and Veterans, August 26, 2014
JOINT FACT SHEET
DoD and VA Take New Steps to Support the Mental Health Needs
of Service Members and Veterans
Today, President Obama will announce 19 new executive actions that the Departments of
Veterans Affairs (VA) and Defense (DoD) are taking to improve the mental health of service
members, veterans and their families. Today’s announcement builds on the actions the
Departments have taken in response to the President’s 2012 Executive Order on service
members, veterans and their families’ mental health. In response to the Executive Order, VA has
increased its mental health staffing, expanded the capacity of the Veterans Crisis Line, and
enhanced its partnerships with community mental health providers. DoD is reviewing its mental
health outreach programs to prioritize those with the greatest impact; DoD and VA worked to
increase suicide prevention awareness and, DoD, VA and the National Institutes of Health jointly
developed the National Research Action Plan on military and veteran’s mental health to better
coordinate federal research efforts. These efforts and actions represent the latest in DoD and the
VA’s continued commitment to ensure that this Administration is working to fulfill our promises
to service members, veterans and their families, and we will continue to look for additional ways
to do so in this space, both thorough our work and work with the private sector.
Today’s executive actions include:
Improving Service Members’ Transition from DOD to VA and Civilian Health Care
Providers
Supporting service members with mental health conditions in making the transition
to VA care: DoD will ensure that all service members leaving military service who are
receiving care for mental health conditions are automatically enrolled in the inTransition
program, through which trained mental health professionals assist service members in
transitioning to new care teams in VA or the community. Currently, service members
must be referred to inTransition by their DoD providers or seek out the program on their
own.
Ensuring continuity of mental health medications during the transition from DoD to
VA: VA is revising its drug formulary policy to ensure that service members leaving
military service and enrolling in the VA health care system maintain access to mental
health medication prescribed by an authorized DoD provider, regardless of whether the
medication is currently on the VA formulary, unless the health care provider identifies
specific safety or clinical reasons to make a change. Currently, VA providers must seek a
waiver to maintain a transitioning service member on a DoD-prescribed mental health
medication if it is not on the VA drug formulary. VA and DoD will inform service
members, Veterans and prescribers about this new policy.
Coordinating care between DoD and VA: DoD and VA recently signed a
Memorandum of Understanding on integrated complex care coordination, ensuring that
DoD and VA will work together to develop a single joint, comprehensive plan for service
members transitioning from DoD to VA with multiple, complex, severe conditions such
as traumatic brain injury, psychological trauma, or other cognitive, psychological, or
emotional disorders. Each comprehensive plan will address the service member/Veteran’s
goals for recovery, rehabilitation, and reintegration, and will be visible to the patient,
family, and Care Management Team.
Improving Access and Quality of Mental Health Care at DoD and VA
Integrating peer specialists into primary care: Today, VA is announcing that it will
pilot the expansion of peer support beyond traditional mental health sites of care to
Veterans in primary care settings. Peer specialists are Veterans trained to help other
Veterans and will work with primary care teams to help improve the health and wellbeing of Veterans being treated in primary care settings. VA’s pilot will place 1-to-2 peer
specialists in 25 primary care sites. DoD will also initiate a peer support pilot project that
will embed peer coordinators at 30 Special Operation Forces locations utilizing the same
Reciprocal Peer Support model as the Vets4Warriors program.
Supporting TRICARE mental health parity: Although, TRICARE is not subject to the
Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008, DoD is taking action to change
its operations to meet the intent of the law. DoD has initiated action to do what it can
under its authority to eliminate quantitative limits for mental health care. DoD is
continuing to work with Congress to bring its mental health and substance use disorder
care coverage up to full parity with medical or surgical conditions.
Enhancing mental health care where service members work: DoD has been moving
mental health care to where Soldiers, Sailors, Marines and Airmen work – in operational
units. To support this work, over the next 12 months, DoD will: 1) expand to all
Services the Behavioral Health Data Portal, a secure, automated system the Army uses to
allow providers, patients and clinical leaders to access vital patient-centered clinical
outcomes data for mental health conditions and substance use disorders, even in austere
settings such as deployed operational units, 2) aggregate and analyze data on the
effectiveness of forward-located care delivery models for improving behavioral health
and other key outcomes, and 3) design a study to determine if this approach is equal to or
more effective than the traditional way in which patients seek care within a clinic or
hospital setting. DoD has also expanded eligibility for non-medical counseling through
Military OneSource, the 24/7 resource for service members and their families, and
Military Family Life Counselors who provide anonymous help while embedded at
installations at the unit level, at child development centers and youth centers.
Continuing our commitment to improve treatments for mental health conditions including
PTSD
Harnessing the efforts of researchers from DoD, VA, the National Institutes of
Health and academia: Today, the Administration announced the White House BRAIN
conference which will take place this fall. This event will feature numerous panels on
PTSD and TBI, with a goal of further advancing efforts fostered by DoD, VA, and
programs such as the INTRUST consortium.
Advancing cutting edge PTSD research: As part of the BRAIN Initiative, the Defense
Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is announcing a new $78.9 million five
year research program to develop new, minimally-invasive neurotechnologies that will
increase the ability of the body and brain to induce healing . The technology may help in
the management of many diseases, including PTSD.
Early detection of suicidality and PTSD: The Department of Defense and the National
Institutes of Health are launching a longitudinal project focused on the early detection of
suicidality, PTSD, and long term effects of TBI, and other related issues in service
members and Veterans. This research will guide the development of novel prevention
and treatment efforts in support of the women and men who have served our country. The
overall goal of this initiative is to rapidly translate findings and develop effective
interventions.
New investments in suicide prevention: The Department of Veterans Affairs is
conducting a national clinical trial on strategies to help prevent future suicidal related
activities among Veterans who have survived a recent attempt. The $34.4 million study
will involve over 1,800 Veterans at 29 VA hospitals nationwide.
Raising Awareness About Mental Health and Encouraging Individuals to Seek Help
Promoting Vet Centers as a counseling resource for combat Veterans and their
families: First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden’s Joining Forces initiative is
partnering with VA to raise awareness about Vet Centers, and encourage Veterans and
their families to seek help at these facilities. There are currently 300 Vet Centers, located
across the United States, which provide counseling services to combat Veterans and their
families, regardless of eligibility status for VA health care.
Training DoD and VA employees to recognize the signs and symptoms of mental
health conditions and help connect people in need to help: Just like people can learn
first aid for physical health conditions, they can learn the basic signs of mental health
problems and how to help someone to get help when needed. Currently, VA provides
suicide prevention training during orientation for all Veterans Health Administration
employees. VA also provided this training to Veterans Benefits Administration
employees in FY 2013. Today, the VA is announcing that it will expand this suicide
prevention training in two ways. First, Veterans Health Administration clinicians will be
required to renew online suicide risk management training every three years. This
refresher training will help further cement suicide prevention principles into the work of
VA clinicians. Second, all other staff members who interact with Veterans will
participate in the Department of Veteran Affairs “Operation SAVE” suicide prevention
training every two years. DoD will also expand existing mental health training for all
service members and improve chaplain training to recognize and refer service members
in need to mental health care.
Expanding mental health awareness campaigns: DoD and VA awareness campaigns
to reduce stigma surrounding mental health care and encourage people experiencing
mental health problems to get help include VA’s Make the Connection campaign and
DoD public service announcements such as “Welcome Home” and “In Your Hands”. In
addition, DoD policy and instructions emphasize to commanders the importance of
treating mental fitness in the same proactive manner as physical fitness. DoD and VA
will expand existing mental health awareness campaigns that have proven benefits for the
military and Veteran populations, and will regularly report on metrics for these efforts
through the Cross Agency Priority Goal and Interagency Task Force on Military and
Veteran Mental Health.
Providing mental health awareness training more broadly: For example, in
partnership with the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Treasury Department will begin
a new initiative to include mental health awareness training for volunteer tax preparers
who will be in place at over 200 facilities in the next three years as part of an existing
initiative.
Improving Patient Safety and Suicide Prevention
Expanding access to opiate overdose reversal kits: DoD is making a new commitment
to ensure that opiate overdose reversal kits and training are available to every first
responder on military bases or other areas under DoD’s control.
Providing new opportunities for service members, Veterans, and their families to
give back unwanted medications: Today, DoD and VA are announcing new programs
to make it easier for service members, Veterans, and their families to safely dispose of
unwanted prescriptions in their facilities, reducing the opportunities for abuse.
Supporting suicide prevention: Over the next 12 months, DoD will implement a policy
to facilitate requests for at-risk service members or at-risk military family members to
voluntarily secure their firearms. Additionally, VA will provide coaching and support
regarding safety plans for suicide prevention, with a focus on increasing safety in the
home, and work with Veterans Service Organizations and others to encourage friends or
community groups to help improve firearm safety for Veterans in distress.
Strengthening Community Resources for Service Members, Veterans, and Their Families
Expanding cultural competency training: While any individual can experience a
mental health condition, service members, Veterans, and their families may experience
additional stressors unique to military service. Community providers may be able to
better serve these individuals through understanding military culture and the experiences
of service members and their families. DoD and VA will disseminate their new military
cultural competency course to 3,000 community mental health providers during FY 2015.
Supporting construction of medical facilities in communities with large veteran
populations: The Treasury Department and the Department of Veterans Affairs are
working together to identify communities in need of veteran mental health facilities and
develop targeted outreach to community development entities (CDEs) in those markets,
including community development financial institutions (CDFIs), to take advantage of
Treasury programs that support these efforts.
File Type | application/pdf |
Author | adeter |
File Modified | 2015-11-30 |
File Created | 2015-04-02 |